The man who drowned in Cowlitz County’s Horseshoe Lake after running from police last Thursday has been publicly identified.
Yegor Ventaminovic Demenko, 37, of Woodland, swam into the lake around midnight after Woodland police Officer Alex Olson approached him because Demenko was in the park after hours, Woodland Police Department said.
Officer Olson briefly lost sight of Demenko, but then spotted him halfway across Horseshoe Lake and struggling to stay above water, police said.
Officer Olson grabbed a lifejacket and swam out to help Demenko, but the man had already slipped below the surface and Olson couldn’t find him, police said.
The Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office’s Dive Team and Clark Cowlitz Fire & Rescue responded but also were unable to find Demenko. Sheriff’s office divers found the man dead about five hours later, police said.
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